Electrical heating device for metallurgical furnaces.



U. WEDGE.

ELECTRICAL BEATING DEVICE FOR. METALLURGICAL FURNACES. APPLICATION mum 1mm 19, 1912 1 88,496. 1 Patnted Feb; 24, 1914;

wrrNEssEs 3 VENTOR M 7 UTL. WEDGE av Hi5 ATTORNEY 55 of uniformity throughout the area of UTLEY W'EDG E, OF ARDMORE, PENNSYLVANlA.

ELECTRICAL HEATING DEVICE FOR METALLURGICAL FURNACES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 24, 1914.

Application filed June 19, 1912. Serial No. 704,525.

To all 'IltltOflZ it mag/concern Ile it known that I, UTLEY Vance, acitizen of the. United States, residing in Ardmcrc, Pennsylvania, have invented certain M improvements in Electrical Heating Devices for Metallurgical Furnaces, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide. effective means for electrically heating the working, chambers of metallurgical furnaces. This object- I attain in the manner hereinafter set forth, reference lfrtilll had to the accompanyixnc drawing, in whieh- Figure 1 is a transverse vertical section of an ordinary type of metallurgical furnace equipped with an electrical heating system in accordance with niy invention: Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line aa, Fig". 1, lookingupwardly toward the roof of the working chamber, and Fig. 3 is a view simi lar to Fig. 2, but, on a smaller scale, and illustrating, another system of wiring.

' In -the drawing, I have illustrated my inventi0n.as applied to that type of furnace which has a plurality of superposed working chambers, 1 representing the outer wall of the furnace and 2 a series of horizontal partitions, each of which forms the hearth of the chamber above it and the arch or roof of the-chamberbelow-it, a furnace of this type being usually provided with a central. rohiting' shaft 3 equipped in each working chamber with a series of rubble arms (not shown in the drawing), for feeding and stirring the material deposited up n the hearth of the chain-- her, the material under treatment [lowing vdo\ \'n\vardl v from chamber to chamber through suitable openings in th hearlhs.

, lily invention is not, however. limited to a 40 furnace of this type.

My. invention consists in disposing: an electrical lGSlSilll'lCC body in the upper portion of the working chamber, so that when it is heated. by the passage of an electric current, it; will radiate this heut downwardly upon the material upon the hearth below. Preferably. the electrical resistance body employed is located close. to the roof oi the working chamber and is suspended thcr from bv means which will resist the high (lefJl'Ct: of temperature. llSllzlllV maintain d in the working! chumlu'rs l this las i" 'l'ui uaces. llct'ernblv', also. the ele tri al resistance body is disposed with some do etworking chamheuso that. the heat radiated 'allov known as Nichronie.

lu that "embodiment of my invention shown in Figs. 1 and? the resistance bodies 4 ('(mSiSt, of Wires extending either straight across from one side of the furnace chamber to the other or looped in that DOIiZlOIli-Qf the furnace in which the central shaft pr 'vents them from being" carried straight across from one side to the other, the opposite ends of these wires bein, connected to terminal plugs 5, preferably mounted in suitable nonconducting, sleeves 6 in the wal s of th furonce and respectively connected to the opposite poles of the electric generator as indicated by the plus and minus signs in Fig. 2.

in order to properly support the wires 4 close to the roof or arch of each working chamber, I prefer to employ loopsz7 embedded in the brick work or other material of which the horizontal partitions -2 are conmosed. although other means of supporting the wires or other resistance bodies may he adopted if desired,-without departing from the essential f ature of my invention. Instead ol employing a series ofindependcut resisting bodies, as shown in Fig. 2, I mavcmploy a single resistance body so disposed as to extend throughout the areaof the working chamber, oneinslance of such disposal being shown in Fig. 3. i

In some cases I propose to use in addition to the electrical resistance bodies on the roof of the working chamber other electrical resistance bodies on the side walls of the elunnber. and I may even mount them upon the refractory etnering 8 of the central rotatiu; sha'lt 3. Tn Fig. l I have shown such resistan -e l I('Nl V 4 on the side valls 1 of the chambers and a resistance body 4" on the ro let in shallin another one of the chamber. 'lh resistance body l constitutes a single line evteudiug! from one terminal 5 to the other. although there may no as many lines as (ha h-ed, and each line may completely encircle the furnace or may extend only part way around the same, as desired, and instead of extending in straight lines the conductors may be waved, corrugated, or otherwise disposed, so as'tc increase their surface area. The conductors 4" mounted upon the rotating shaft preferably communicate with contact rings 9 on the interior of the shaft which contactrings may, receive the terminals of the stationary conductors located in the interior of the shaft.

furnace having with an electncal resistance body contained 1' claim: v

1. The combination of a metallurgical a working chamber therein,

in said working chamber and supported by loops embedded in the structural portion of the furnace adjacent to which the electrical resistance body is disposed, said loops projecting into the working chamber to receive the resistance body.

2. The combination of a metalliir 'cal furnace havinga central rotating s aft,

with an electrical resistance body mounted u on said shaft and contained in afworkin'g c amber of the furnace,

3. The combination of a metallurgical furnace having a working chamber therein,

ing down into the working chamber to receive the resistanc'ebody.

4. The combination of a metallurgical furnace having a series of superposed working chambers and a central rotating rabble-carrying shaft, with electrical re sistance bodies mounted in thevupper portion of a plurality of said worlcing chambers so as to radiate heat downwardly npon' the material on the hearths of the chambers as said material being agitated by the rabbles.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presencev of two subscribing witnesses. I

a a UTLEY WEDGE. Witnesses:

KATE A. Brianna, HAMILTON D. TQ'RNER. 

